Home is Nowhere
by AquaRias
Summary: Gibbs never really appeared to care a wit about his senior field agent…until Tony disappears one night without a trace. A mysterious assailant wants revenge, and this time it looks like it may be too late.
1. Affliction

Home is Nowhere

**Home is Nowhere **

**Summary: Gibbs never really appeared to care a wit about his senior field agent…until Tony disappears one night without a trace. A mysterious assailant wants revenge, and this time it looks like it may be too late. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Navy NCIS.**

**A/N: Set mid second season, a few months after 'Chained'. This is AU people, so there are a few slight changes. **

**Chapter One: Affliction**

"Hey Tony?" Kate sighed, poking him roughly on the shoulder.

"What?" Tony muttered distractedly, his tongue poking out of the corner of his mouth as his eyes remained fixed on the small screen in front of him.

"Gibbs is gonna kill you if he sees you playing Tetris again – he's already mad enough about your little slip yesterday." She warned, nudging him again to break his concentration.

"Dammit!" Tony hissed, throwing his phone onto the desk with a thump as the little blocks piled up to the top of the screen. He turned his glare on to the former secret service agent as the phone began to beep, the words "_Game Over!_" flashing on the screen. "I was _this_ close to beating my high score!"

"You're going to be this close to being fired if you don't start that report, DiNozzo!" Gibbs snapped, striding around the corner of the bullpen.

"But Boss…" Tony whined, swinging his chair around. "It's Christmas Eve!"

"I don't _care_ DiNozzo. Do it." Gibbs ordered, before beginning to stride towards the elevator.

"Yeah Boss…" Tony muttered, glancing to his watch. "No wait, it's actually Christmas now." He sighed, dragging the loose bits of paper across his desk towards him.

"Oh, and Tony?" Tony paused at the soft tone, raising his eyes curiously as his boss made his way back over. "I forgot something."

"Wha-" Tony was cut off as his Boss's hand collided harshly with the back of his head. "Oh. That." He muttered, rubbing his head. "Happy Christmas to you too boss."

"You know it DiNozzo." With that, Gibbs punched the button on the elevator, stepping inside as it arrived. He smirked at Tony slightly before the doors closed, blocking him from view.

Tony shook his head, picking up his pen and muttering to himself as he began to write. "Not even a minute into Christmas and it already sucks…I had a _date_. A blonde!"  
"Let me guess." Kate said, leaning forward at her desk. "That new secretary?"

"Yep." Tony sighed, rubbing his eyes. "_Linda_. Twenty-six, Five foot eight, natural blonde and sizable assets…" He shook his head mournfully.

Kate stood up, making a show of stretching languidly. "Well, I'll be off then, I'm done." She grabbed her coat and winked at Tony as she passed him. "Have fun." She stepped into the elevator, before grabbing the doors just as they were closing. "Oh, and Tony?"

"Yeah?" He muttered, not even bothering to glance up.

"Happy Christmas!" She said cheerfully, before the doors shut once again.

_Ninety-four minutes later._

"Done!" Tony exclaimed, his voice echoing through the deserted building. He grabbed the report, throwing it onto Gibbs' desk as he snatched his coat and bag off his desk. He glanced at his watch as he waited for the elevator to arrive. 1:35 AM. "Great," He muttered, stepping into the elevator. "By the time I get home I'll have about five hours sleep before I have to come _back_ to work." He sighed. Finally, the elevator arrived at the ground floor. He stepped out, nodding to the security guards, before exiting the building.

A few minutes later, he was pulling into his apartment parking lot. He opened the door and climbed out of the car, flicking the button to lock it. He had only taken one step towards the building, however, when he felt the cold, hard, barrel of a gun at the back of his head.

…NCIS…

"McGee!" Gibbs barked, striding down the stairs from MTAC. "Where's DiNozzo!"

"I-I don't know, Boss, he's only a few minutes late…maybe he's caught in traffic?" Tim suggested hastily, rushing forward quickly to hand Gibbs the coffee he'd fetched.

"Call his cell. Tell him if he's not here in five, he's on desk duty for a month." Gibbs snapped before disappearing around the corner.

Tim nodded and hastily grabbed the phone off the desk, dialling quickly. He waited for several moments, before a voice came onto the line.

"_You've reached DiNozzo. Leave a message unless you're Gibbs, in which case you'll shoot me for not answering. If it __**is**__ Gibbs, then I assure you I have a very good reason. I must be either dying or suicidal to not answer a call from you, Boss. Beep!"_

"Tony, it's McGee. I'd get down here as soon as humanely possible – Gibbs is _mad_." He muttered, before hanging up the phone. He sighed, rubbing his temples.

"I'll try his home phone." Kate murmured, her eyes showing concern as she dialled. A few moments later, she shook her head quickly, hanging up. "Nope."

"When did you last see him?" Tim asked worriedly, chewing his lip slightly.

"Last night…or, this morning rather. Gibbs had us stay back to finish our reports. I left around midnight – he was still only part way done. I figure he would have been here at least another hour if he finished it."

They were interrupted by the arrival of Gibbs, looking particularly livid. "Well?" He snapped. "Where _is_ he, McGee?"

"Uh, well, boss…you see, we couldn't exactly _reach_ him." Tim muttered, glancing down slightly.

Gibbs' eyes narrowed suddenly, it took Tim a moment to realise that it was in concern rather then anger. "He didn't answer his cell?" Tim shook his head. "Grab your gear." Gibbs ordered striding passed them. "We're going to Tony's."

…NCIS…

They climbed out of the car the moment they arrived, slamming the doors quickly and hurrying over to the building. "That's Tony's car!" Kate exclaimed, pointing to the mustang.

Gibbs nodded briefly, before continuing on towards the apartment complex entrance, Tim and Kate following quickly behind. He surprised the others by entering the security code, allowing them access into Tony's apartment.

The search was quick – the apartment was surprisingly clean, which shocked Kate and Tim a little, and hardly anything was out of place.

"His cell, car keys and house keys are missing." Gibbs announced, striding back into the main room after quickly checking the bedroom. "As are the clothes he wore to work yesterday. I don't believe that Tony ever came home last night."

"But…his car-" Kate was cut off quickly.

"He made it to the parking lot, but he never reached his apartment. Whatever we're looking for is in the lobby or the parking lot." He walked quickly back outside into the hallway, Tim and Kate only a step behind. "McGee! You take the parking lot. Kate, you're with me in the lobby."

Several minutes later, Tim ran back inside the lobby, something clutched in his gloved hand. "Boss! I found his cell. It was under his car." Gibbs jerked his head towards the door, signalling that they should move the search outside. "Good job McGee. Bag it and tag it." He ordered as he strode back out into the parking lot. "Where are you Tony?" He muttered, shaking his head slightly.

…NCIS…

Tony groaned as he woke slowly, fuzzy images dancing in front of him as he opened blurry eyes. A moment after his sight began to clear, Tony felt a pounding in his head as possibly the biggest headache he'd ever suffered made itself well and truly known. "Argh…" He moaned, rubbing the back of his head. He froze as his hand collided with a sticky substance, bringing it into his eyesight and studying it for a moment before he realised it was blood.

His thoughts were a mess – all muddled up in his head. He couldn't remember much of anything; he found it increasingly hard to focus on anything at all, and briefly wondered what was wrong. _Concussion_. A voice in his mind whispered, familiar, although he couldn't quite place it.

A slight movement in the corner of his eye and he was suddenly aware that he wasn't alone. His eyes snapped to the left, slowly beginning to focus on the shadowy figure in the corner. "Who…who're you?" He slurred, his eyes blinking rapidly as he fought to sustain the picture.

"Ah. Mr. DiNozzo." The voice was soft and – slimy, was the only word he could think of to describe it. Perhaps he'd think of a better adjective when his vocabulary decided to work again. As the figure stepped into the light, Tony realised that he was vaguely familiar…he couldn't quite remember where he'd seen him though. He was sure that the concussion didn't help either.

"You're finally awake. I've been waiting so long to have a little…chat with you." The voice was _dangerous_, Tony decided. He really wasn't in the mood to deal with this right now. He couldn't even _think_ properly, let alone hold a conversation with this stranger, and his head felt like some one was setting off little explosions in his brain every few seconds.

"M'fraid…M'not really feelin' like…talking." Tony muttered, almost gasping with the effort it took to talk.

"That's alright." The man smiled – but it was not a nice smile, not at all. It was an insane and _dangerous_ smile. Despite his fairly confused state, all kinds of warning bells were going off in Tony's mind. "For now, I'll do all the talking." His smile faded as a look of enragement crossed his face. "Does the name Jeffrey White mean anything to you Anthony?"

It did. Tony realised. He wasn't quite sure what, but the name definitely rang some bells. "Sorta…" He mumbled. He had a sudden flash of a young bespectacled man, smiling dorkily in an orange jumpsuit.

The strange man leant forward – and Tony realised the resemblance. If that image was Jeffrey White, then this man was definitely related. Although probably a few years older, the similarities were there. "Sort of?" He asked coolly. "You're going to have to do better then that, Anthony."

Suddenly, something heavy was colliding with Tony's head, setting off fireworks behind his eyelids. He screamed as the pounding in his head increased ten fold, gasping for breath as he curled into a protective ball. He lay there for several moments, not daring to move in fear of the pain increasing.

"Now Anthony, think hard. Think _really_ hard. Or do you not remember poor Jeffrey White? Do you not remember the man you murdered? Do you not remember my _brother?_"

Tony didn't answer. He wasn't sure he could. The pain was unbearable – he knew he wouldn't last much longer.

"Well, I suppose it doesn't really matter if you remember or not," Tony sighed as he felt the blackness closing in. "You're going to pay either way."


	2. Miseria Cantare

Home is Nowhere

**Home is Nowhere **

**Summary: Gibbs never really appeared to care a wit about his senior field agent…until Tony disappears one night without a trace. A mysterious assailant wants revenge, and this time it looks like it may be too late. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Navy NCIS.**

**Chapter two: Miseria Cantare**

Gibbs sighed wearily as he exited the elevator, pausing briefly at the glass door. He took a deep breath. He could do this. With that thought clearly in mind, he pasted on his blank face and stepped through the door.

"Gibbs!" Abby exclaimed, rushing over with a wide smile. "You bring me caf-pow?"

Gibbs sighed, his resolve fading at the sight of the cheerful forensic scientist. "Sorry Abbs…" He murmured.

Her eyes narrowed, eyebrows snapping together. "What's happened?" She demanded, crossing her arms over her chest.

"It's Tony." Gibbs said finally. "He's missing."

Abby gasped, her hand flying to her mouth. "Oh no…" She whispered, her eyes tearing up. "Is he okay? Tell me he's okay, Gibbs!" She exclaimed, quickly becoming hysterical. When Gibbs lifted his arms, Abby practically jumped into them, burying her face in his shirt. After a few moments, Gibbs gently pushed her off him.

"Look Abbs, I know this is hard…but right now I need my top scientist on this case." He smiled and ruffled her hair, kissing her on the cheek.

She nodded brusquely , wiping the tears from her eyes quickly. "You got it Boss. What you got for me?" She said stonily, her mouth fixed in a grim line.

Gibbs handed over the plastic evidence bag with Tony's cell inside. "Check it for prints, DNA…_anything_ that might lead us to Tony."

…NCIS…

When Tony next awoke, the first thing he noticed was that he had been moved. His eyesight was thankfully clearer, and his headache had receded to a distant pounding in the back of his head. The new room was lighter then the first – or maybe his eyesight was just a hell of a lot better. It looked like some kind of old basement; the light came from a swinging bulb in the roof , and there were no windows, which suggested that he was underground. There was a mouldy looking couch in one corner, but not much else other then that. The floor was stone, although he was lying on a faded red square of old carpet.

After establishing that he was, infact, completely alone this time, he decided to thoroughly analyse his situation. His memories were much clearer now, he remembered working Christmas Eve with Kate and driving home, but he was pretty much blank after that. His memory picked up when he'd woken up that first time in a much smaller room. The man who said he was Jeffrey White's brother.

"Hang on…" Tony muttered to himself. "Jeffrey said he had a _sister_, but he never mentioned a brother." _He also turned out to be a serial killer. It's not exactly much of a stretch for him to be lying about this too._

He was startled out of his thoughts by the squeak of a door. Unsurprisingly, it was the stranger-who-claimed-to-be-Jeffrey's-brother, back for another chat by the looks of it.

"Hello Anthony." The chilling voice was down right creepy – especially when coupled with that slightly maniacal smile.

"Hi." Tony muttered dryly, wincing at his scratchy tone. "Nice of you to visit."

"I imagine that you are quite hungry, Anthony? It has been three days since our little chat." Tony couldn't help his eyes widening at this – three days! "I'm afraid I may have hit you a little harder then I intended. But you did anger me so, denying memory of poor Jeffrey. Ah well, it just means that our fun was delayed a bit is all." The smile was back in full force, and Tony couldn't help marvelling at the resemblance between this man and Jeffrey White. The man wasn't lying, they were certainly related.

"Now Anthony, tell me…" The man's eyes narrowed from his position near the door. "Why did you shoot poor Jeffrey?"

Tony met his gaze, glaring fiercely back at him. "I shot him because your precious _Jeffrey_ pulled a knife on me. It was him or me."

"And _of course_, you chose yourself over poor young Jeffrey." The smile was gone, his voice was like ice.

"Of course." Tony replied, rolling his eyes. "Wouldn't you?"

"_Never!_" The man snapped, lunging forward. Tony barely managed to dodge the kick as it was flung his way. "I would have given my _life_ for Jeffrey!"

"And what about all those people he killed?" Tony hissed, stopping him in his tracks. "What about all those poor people who had their throats slashed from behind, executed without ever seeing their killer."

Tony had pushed too far. He discovered that as he found himself drifting back into unconsciousness, the pain in his head returned at its fullest, pieces of glass remaining imbedded in his skull – the remains of what had once been a wine bottle, now smashed into a thousand pieces around Tony's prone body.

"And now your friends will receive a picture." He murmured as he knelt next to his unconscious prisoner, stroking his pale cheek softly. "They will suffer your loss just as I have suffered Jeffrey's. Picture by picture, they will watch you die."

…NCIS…

The whole team was assembled in Abby's lab, watching anxiously as she attempted to pull prints off the phone. "It's no good Gibbs," she finally sighed. "The guy either wore gloves or wiped it clean. There's no prints here." She dropped the phone back onto the desk, leaning back in her chair wearily.

Suddenly, the silence was cut by a loud beep. All four pairs of eyes snapped to Tony's phone, which continued to beep insistently. Abby reached forward and picked it up, her hands shaking slightly. She showed the screen to the others, watching as their eyes widened as they saw the screen.

"_Text Message Received!"_

Abby pressed okay, and they waited anxiously as the message loaded. It took a few minutes – it was obviously either a very long message or an image file. It was an image. Abby's face paled drastically as she stared at the screen – Gibbs had to pry the phone from her shaking grip to see it for himself.

"DiNozzo…" He hissed, eyes wide as he stared, transfixed at the image on the screen.

It was Tony, lying face down in a pool of blood. He wore nothing but boxer shorts, and an open wound was clearly visible on the back of his head. His whole body was covered in bruises, and if he looked closely, Gibbs could see what looked like glass embedded in the cuts. Underneath the picture was a short message, written with perfect grammar and spelling.

"_Do not worry, he is alive. But for how much longer…well, we'll just have to see."_

Gibbs shook his head quickly, forcing himself into Boss mode. He ignored Kate's rapidly paling face as she saw the picture, striding over to the shocked Abby and shaking her gently. "Abby, I need a fix on whatever phone sent that message." Abby didn't answer. "Abby! You with me?" She opened her eyes suddenly, shaking her head.

"Yeah Gibbs, I'm with you. GPS fix." She said with a nod, forcing the image of her best friend lying in his own blood out of her head. "I'm on it."

…NCIS…

"What can you tell me, Duck?" Gibbs asked, thrusting the blown up image into his hands.

Ducky studied the photo for a few long minutes, before nodding slowly. "Well, not much from such a bad quality photo…but young Anthony will definitely have suffered a concussion as a result of that injury. It's horrendous! I wouldn't be surprised if he's completely amnesiac!" He traced the head wound with his finger. "See there? The back of his skulls almost been caved in! Poor Anthony will be in a tremendous amount of pain from that wound." Ducky shook his head, his face much paler then was natural.

"I'm so sorry Jethro…" Gibbs nodded, placing a hand on Ducky's shoulder.

"I know, Duck. So am I." He sighed, before turning and striding back out the room. "Keep looking at the photo, tell me if you can tell anything else from it."

…NCIS…

Kate sighed, pushing the paper work away from her. "I can't work like this!" She exclaimed, causing Tim to start slightly. She buried her face in her hands, scrubbing at her tired eyes.

Tim walked over and perched on her desk, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry Kate," he tried to sound brave, tried to sound sure. "He'll be fine. You know Tony…he gets himself into these things but he always bounces right back. I mean, he's Tony!"

"I know…" Kate whispered. "But he's never been missing this long before. You know what they say about forty-eight hours, and it's been close to four _days_!" He rubbed her shoulder soothingly, although he honestly didn't feel a whole lot more optimistic then she did.

"What's it gonna be like…" Kate whispered. "The place is just so…empty without him. Everyone feels it, I can tell! Everyone knew Tony…despite all the lame jokes and constant teasing, it's impossible not to like the guy." She glanced over to Tony's vacant desk, where a large cardboard box had been placed. Inside were the many notes and cards that had been collected over the last four days from almost all the NCIS staff. One of the night guards had come up with the idea –The last one of any of them to see him before his disappearance- of writing their hopes and wishes for Tony in a card so he could read them when he got back. It was optimistic, and very wishful thinking, but it had been a nice gesture. She hadn't been able to bring herself to make one yet…no one on Tony's team had.

"I know…" Tim finally muttered. "It'll be strange. No more 'Probie'…no more ridiculing and bullying…" Tim sighed. "I never thought I'd miss it…but I do."

Kate's eyes met his for a moment, sharpening slightly. "He never bullied you Tim," she said softly. "It was never his intention to hurt you. If he hated you, he'd just be all stiff and formal. Teasing is just his way of saying he cares."

"You know him pretty well." Tim said, sighing slightly. "I don't."

"I don't know that I really _know_ him." Kate said, her eyes staring out the window. "I know things _about_ him – he likes pizza, movies and girls…he loves undercover work and hates writing reports. But I don't really _know_ him…"

Tim finished what she left unsaid. "And now, maybe we never will."


	3. Dream of Waking

Home is Nowhere

**Home is Nowhere **

**Summary: Gibbs never really appeared to care a wit about his senior field agent…until Tony disappears one night without a trace. A mysterious assailant wants revenge, and this time it looks like it may be too late. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Navy NCIS.**

**Chapter three: Dream of Waking**

"_Good work DiNozzo," Gibbs said with a proud smile. _

"_Nice one, Tony!" Kate exclaimed, "I knew I could count on you!"_

"_Tony!" Abby squealed, pulling him into a rib-crushing hug. "I missed you so much!"_

_Suddenly, the mood darkened as happy smiled turned into thunderous expressions._

"_DiNozzo! You've let me down!" Gibbs snapped, eyes blazing. _

"_Oh good job Tony." Kate muttered sarcastically. "Why did he __**hire**__ you?"_

_Tony turned pleading eyes to Abby. She wouldn't…would she? Abby always had his back! He felt his heart drop to his feet as she turned away silently. _

"_Anthony."_

"Anthony…"

Tony jerked awake at the whisper, the images from his dream flashing through his head. He was tied to a chair, the bonds were tight around his wrists – he was in a new room, just as he was every time he woke. There was a face right in front of his eyes, disturbingly close. Despite his vision being so blurry and doubled he could only see a vague outline, he knew already that it was the man he'd come to hate.

"Good morning Anthony." White murmured, stroking Tony's cheek softly. "You were dreaming about them…weren't you?" His hand covered Tony's mouth harshly, stopping him from answering. "Ah, ah…don't deny it, Anthony." He leaned in close, his mouth by Tony's ear. "I _heard_ you…" he whispered, before pulling back with a smirk.

Tony glared viciously as White pulled out a piece of dirty cloth. He tied it tightly around Tony's mouth, smiling as Tony tried to mumble through the gag. "Now say cheese, Anthony, it's time to send your _friends_ another pretty picture." He paused, pretending to think on that for a moment. "Oh wait. They're not really your friends though, _are_ they…?" He sighed, gazing into Tony's eyes. "They've _abandoned_ you, Anthony."

"Ey..'Avn't!" Tony spat, although through the gag his words were hardly understandable.

"Oh Anthony…" White murmured, shaking his head. "Poor, poor Anthony. It's been two weeks! Don't you think they would have found you by now, if they _really_ cared?" He sighed. "Gibbs has solved plenty of harder mysteries…why, now that it's his precious senior field agent, has he yet to solve this one?" He leaned forward, his eyes locked onto Tony's narrowed green ones. "I'll tell you why," he whispered. "He cares _more_ about some navy commander he's never met then he does about _you._ You're on your own now."

White smiled at the distress in Tony's eyes, before pulling out his phone. "Now smile Anthony!"

…NCIS…

That night, Tony had been thrown into the trunk of a car, blindfolded and gagged. He'd been in the car nearly two hours, before they'd stopped. He'd been carried down a flight of stairs (into another basement, he presumed) and then White had removed the blindfold and gag, and left him. For once, he was left _conscious._ He lay there for hours… unable to sleep – in the last two weeks, he hadn't needed to; he'd been unconscious every time. He couldn't help the words running through his brain, leaving him exhausted but unable to sleep.

_DiNozzo…You've let me down._

_Why did he hire you?_

_They've abandoned you._

_He doesn't care about you._

_You're on your own now._

_No. No, they'll come for me. I know they will. __**Gibbs**__ will come for me._

_Then why haven't they?_

_They're just…having trouble finding me. This guy's smart. _

_He's probably already replaced you, you know...Kate's probably been promoted to senior filed agent. He always did like her – he calls you DiNozzo, but he calls __**her**__ Kate._

_Even…even if he has – Abby will find me._

_Abby? She's more devoted to Gibbs then she is to you. She'd do anything Gibbs asked her. Even abandon you. He treats her like a daughter. He never treated __**you**__ like a son._

_They'll find me._

_They won't. You're on your own now. Better start getting used to it. _

…NCIS…

"Gibbs!" Abby exclaimed, rushing into the bullpen. "Gibbs! We got another picture!" Gibbs was on his feet in second. They had to move fast – last time, by the time they'd gotten a GPS fix and got to the area (it had only been a few blocks down the road) the only thing left in the basement was a phone. A stolen phone with no prints, no DNA and no clues. The basement too had been scoured of all evidence, save a large pool of Tony's blood.

"Get your gear!" He snapped at Kate and Tim, before taking the phone from Abby. It was Tony, tied to a wooden chair with a gag in his mouth. He was awake this time – his green eyes were open, the pupils dilated and cloudy with emotion. He had a black eye and his face was covered in blood which seemed to have come from a large cut above his left eye. There was another message under the picture, just like the first.

"_Pretty, isn't he? Poor Anthony…such a shame to waste those good looks."_

They wasted no time. They were in the car and driving within five minutes, Abby feeding the GPS fix into the car. The location was further away this time, just outside of Washington. Gibbs could feel in his gut that it was hopeless – it would take too long to get there. By the time they did, Tony would be gone.

He was right.

They spent hours at the crime scene, desperate to find something. But other then another stolen phone and a splash of blood on the wall, there was nothing. No prints, no evidence. Nothing. Gibbs sighed, resting his forehead on the passenger seat window. It had been a _long_ fortnight. He ignored the worried glance that was traded between his agents, his exhausted eyes sliding shut. He was asleep before he knew it, for the first time in what seemed like days.

…NCIS…

"Where's Gibbs?" Morrow asked, walking down the stairs from MTAC. Kate shrugged; she had just arrived.

"Uh…he went out for coffee, sir." McGee answered quickly, pointing to the elevator.

"Speak of the devil…" Kate muttered, as Gibbs strode out of the elevator. His favourite mood lately seemed to be either 'enraged' or 'depressed'. It was hard to say which one was more tolerable. Today, he seemed to be opting for enraged.

"Director." He growled with a sharp nod.

"Jethro." Tom inclined his head slightly. "Have you given any thought to what I mentioned yesterday?"

"No, I have not." Gibbs hissed, looking murderous.

Morrow's eyes narrowed dangerously. "I am truly sorry for your loss Jethro, but-"

"It is not a loss!" Gibbs snapped. "Not until I see a body."

"Alright." Tom nodded, holding his hands out calmingly. "Well in the mean time-"

"I will not replace Tony."

"I am not giving you a choice." Morrow hissed, his eyes turning to stone. "Until your agent is found, you have to have a senior field agent on your team. Since your remaining agents are hardly qualified, you have until tomorrow to find a _temporary_ replacement. Otherwise, I will choose one for you." With that, the director turned on his heel and walked calmly back up the stairs. Gibbs stared up after him, still silently fuming.

After a few moments, Gibbs turned around, heading back for the elevator. "You two can go home." He snapped, before punching the button to take him down to Abby. Once the doors shut, Gibbs finally allowed his mask to drop. He leant heavily against the wall, his face the very definition of anguish.

…NCIS…

"I didn't know Gibbs and Tony were so close." McGee commented as they sipped their coffee. After being dismissed so early, the two had decided to go get some lunch. They figured it was best to stay close – who knew when Gibbs would call them back in.

"Me either, really." Kate said thoughtfully. "I mean, I knew they were close…but Gibbs is really torn up over this."

"I've never seen him like this before." Tim muttered, shaking his head. "It's downright scary."

"It's obviously hitting him hard…Abby too. Have you seen her lately?"

"No…not really. I guess I thought…" He paused, looking away. "Well, I was the newest. The least close to Tony. I didn't want to intrude…"

Kate nodded, understanding. "I can't believe the director wants Gibbs to replace Tony already." She sighed. "I think it's cruel. Tony was like a son to Gibbs – how can morrow expect him to just…get over it. Just like that?"

Tim shook his head. "I don't think he does…but he's the director. He has to keep in mind the bigger picture. He can't put our team back out on field work without a senior agent – in his mind, we've had three weeks to grieve…we should be getting back to work."

"Yeah…I guess." She muttered. "It's never going to be the same again, is it?"

"No. No, I don't think it will."

…NCIS…

When the elevator doors opened, Abby was at her computer. Glancing over to see who it was, she took one look at his face before opening her arms. Gibbs practically fell into the embrace, holding her for several long moments before finally letting go. She kept one arm draped securely around his shoulders, leading him over to the chair and sitting him down.

It was a few minutes before he spoke. "Morrow wants to replace him." He stated, his voice catching slightly.

"Already?" Abby gasped, shaking her head. "But…"

Gibbs sighed. "Abs…it's been almost three weeks." He muttered, shaking his head. "What if…what if we don't find him?"

Abby took a long breath, considering her answer carefully. "Then…we don't." She rested her head on Gibbs' shoulder as he wrapped his arm around her waist. "Tony…Tony would want us to stay strong. He wouldn't want us to be sad…but, it's hard. Ya know? I mean…Tony, he's like my brother. My best friend. He could fool all the others, but he couldn't fool me. Told me everything…" Her voice trailed off as she thought back on it all. "I can't imagine life without Tony." She finished finally, feeling Gibbs nod in agreement.

"Hopefully…hopefully, we won't have to."

"But what if we _have_ to?" Abby asked, lifting her head to look into his eyes.

"Then we deal."

The silence stretched on for a while longer, before Abby brought up the original topic. "What are you gonna do about Morrow?"

"I don't know Abbs…I dunno." He sighed, shaking his head.

"How long you got?"

"Till tomorrow. Then the director's gonna pick for me." He groaned softly. "Dear God. I'm gonna have to break _another_ one in."

"It's only temporary Gibbs. We'll be okay."

"I know Abbs, I know. Sometimes I just need to hear it though."


	4. Now the World

Home is Nowhere

**Home is Nowhere **

**Summary: Gibbs never really appeared to care a wit about his senior field agent…until Tony disappears one night without a trace. A mysterious assailant wants revenge, and this time it looks like it may be too late. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Navy NCIS.**

**Chapter four: Now the World**

The next morning, being suspended from the field, the team found themselves working on cold cases. It was around nine o'clock, when the director made his way down the stairs. Behind him, a young man trailed closely, dressed in a suit with a back pack slung over his shoulder. Suddenly, the team knew who this man was – the director's choice of replacement.

Gibbs stood, an angry frown on his face. Morrow, however, cut him off before he even had a chance to speak.

"Special Agent Gibbs, this is Special Agent Liam Chase. He is going to be filling in _temporarily_ as your senior field agent." He turned to the man behind him. Chase looked to be about late twenties, he had long-ish blonde hair and dark brown eyes. "Agent Chase, this is Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs, Caitlin Todd and Timothy McGee. I trust you'll get him settled, Jethro?" Gibbs nodded curtly.

"Good." Morrow said, inclining his head. "I'll leave you to get acquainted then."

Gibbs stared intensely at the kid, almost smirking as he began to sweat slightly under the three intense gazes.

"Uh…hi?" He offered, holding out his hand. When no one reached out to shake it, he let it fall limply back by his side. "Okay then…" He ran a hand through his hair, glancing away from their staring.

"Hm." Gibbs grunted, before turning on his heel and striding towards the elevator. "What are you waiting for, McGee?" He asked, without turning. "Get him a desk." With that, he stepped into the elevator and disappeared from sight.

"Uh…I guess you can have that one." McGee said awkwardly, pointing to the desk at the end of the row. Chase nodded silently, before moving over to the desk. He placed his backpack on the table, before turning back to the other two.

"I heard about your team mate…" He said softly. "I'm sorry.

Kate nodded slightly in acknowledgement, before taking a seat at her own desk and returning to work.

"Thanks." Tim muttered, before doing the same. They worked in silence for a good hour, with the new guy just sitting there with nothing to do. Eventually, Gibbs returned, Abby close on his heels.

"What are you doing, Chase!" he barked, striding over angrily. "This is not a holiday. If you wanted a holiday, you should've worked at a post office." He growled, before dumping a pile of papers on his desk. "Read those." Chase reached over to take them. "Not now!" Gibbs snapped, walking off. "Get your gear, we have a case" He tossed the keys to Kate. "Gas the truck."

…NCIS…

Tony shivered in the cold, dark room, rubbing his hands up his arms. White had discovered a new method of driving Tony insane – locking him in a small, _freezing_ room with no windows. He barely even came down to chat anymore, Tony had counted six days since his last visit. There was a barrel of dirty, suspicious looking water in one corner that he was forced to drink form, and a bucket in another corner for…other purposes. Food was another matter. He was lucky to get an apple or a muesli bar whenever White visited – which wasn't all that often anymore.

"You're going insane." He muttered, his voice harsh and scratchy.

"Am not."

"Are too."

"Prove it."

"You're talking to yourself, for one." He said smugly.

"There's no one else to talk to." He pouted, crossing his arms.

"You're answering yourself, for two. Gibbs would agree with me."

"Who cares?"

"I do."

"You don't."

"I do."

"Is this what my days have come to?" He finally sighed wearily. "I'm arguing with myself."

"Anthony."

"Great." He thought out loud. "Just what I need."

"How are you today, Anthony?" White asked smiling widely.

"How do you _think_ I am?" He muttered under his breath. "Just peachy." He said with a wide beam.

Suddenly, White held a photo up in front of his face. "Do you know who this is?" White asked softly.

Tony studied the photo for a moment, before shaking his head. "Nope."

"His name is Liam Chase." White grinned. "He is the man that your precious Gibbs has replaced you with."

Tony's mouth went dry. "No…" He muttered to himself. "He wouldn't."

"He did." White answered, dropping an apple into Tony's lap before walking toward the door.

"Wait!" Tony rasped. White turned slowly, gesturing for Tony to speak. "How…how long has it been?"

"Five weeks tomorrow." White said with a smile. "Trust me. They've long forgotten you." With that, he left Tony to his thoughts.

…NCIS…

It was a Friday night, and the team was stuck doing reports. They'd had a fairly straight forward suicide case that had actually turned out to be suicide – it was one of the few cases that they'd been able to wrap up in a day.

"What was that neighbours name again?" Kate asked, raising her head to glance at her two co workers.

"Uh..." McGee glanced down at his own paper.

"Jared Dawson." Chase muttered, without pausing in his writing.

Kate nodded slightly, barely acknowledging the man. Chase sighed, shaking his head. He was sick of this team – the lot of them acted as if he'd _killed_ their old team mate, rather then replaced him. After a few moments, he looked up to see Todd glaring at him. He threw down his pen with a sigh, turning to face her.

"What is your problem with me?" he snapped angrily. "This…_Anthony DiNozzo_. He must have been some special guy." He muttered, shaking his head.

Kate sighed, rubbing her temples. "I'm sorry. It's just…hard." She sighed, glancing away.

Chase nodded, before lifting his pen again.

McGee was the next one to break the uncomfortable silence. "Why were you reassigned?" He asked, without glancing up from his report.

Chase shrugged. "My team leader retired. There were only three of us on the team – Agent Harrison was a probie. Not a very good one either. She was dropped and I got reassigned. To you guys." His tone was slightly resentful, making Kate twinge guiltily.

"Look, I'm sorry." She said, standing up. "I think we got off on the wrong foot." She walked over to her desk and held out her hands. "Truce?" She offered, smiling slightly.

Chase nodded quickly, taking her hand. "Truce." Kate returned to her desk, picking up her pen. They worked silently for a few moments.

"He _was_ a special guy." Kate said finally, glancing towards Tony's untouched desk. "I guess you don't really appreciate what you've got, till you've lost it." She sighed.

Tim nodded slightly from his desk. "Never thought I'd miss being called Probie." He muttered with a rueful smile.

"I never thought I'd miss his _constant_ prying into my social life – reading my emails, listening in on phone calls…" She sighed. Suddenly, the elevator doors opened to reveal Abby. She had her farting hippo clutched in her arms and she looked like she'd been crying.

"You okay Abby?" Kate asked, standing with concern.

Abby nodded, sitting down behind Tony's desk. She folded her arms on the desk and lay her head on them. "I miss him." She whispered finally, hugging the hippo closer.

"Yeah I know." Kate murmured, rubbing Abby's back soothingly. "We all do."

"Gibbs…" She hiccuped slightly. "Gibbs told me that we'd find him."

"We…we still might Abby…" Tim said comfortingly, inching closer.

Abby shook her head. "It's been six weeks. We haven't had a photo since the third week."

Chase looked away form the scene as he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. He opened it, glancing at the number. "Identity withheld." He frowned, before pressing the green button.

"Agent Chase." He said softly, walking a few paces away from the others so as not to disturb them.

"Go to the abandoned basketball court behind your house at three A.M. Come alone." The voice was toneless – Chase definitely didn't recognise it.

The phone hung up with a beep. Chase pulled the phone away from his ear, frowning at the blank screen.

"Who was that?" Tim asked, walking over.

"Wrong number." Chase said shortly, walking back to the desk. After all, it probably had been.

Probably.


	5. The Killing Lights

Despite his conviction to refuse to show up, at exactly Three A

**Home is Nowhere **

**Summary: Gibbs never really appeared to care a wit about his senior field agent…until Tony disappears one night without a trace. A mysterious assailant wants revenge, and this time it looks like it may be too late. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Navy NCIS.**

**Chapter five: The Killing Lights**

Despite his conviction to refuse to show up, at exactly Three A.M Liam Chase found himself approaching the basketball courts behind his house. They were well and truly abandoned – vines grew everywhere and weeds covered the once concrete floor. The basket had actually been stolen from the pole, so there wasn't a whole lot of basketball happening there.

He was nervous, yet very curious. He stood in the shadows by the pole for several long minutes, staring into the darkness. No one came. After ten minutes, he stepped forward, deciding to look around the area a little. He had crossed the court and was just entering the surrounding forest, when something caught his eye. A large cardboard box, stuck between two trees. It was the kind you used to store large objects in when moving house – it even had a house packing logo written on the side. He approached carefully, being sure not to make too much noise. He squinted once he reached the box – it looked like it had writing in it. At a closer glance he discovered he was right; Someone had written on the top in thick black permanent marker.

"_To:_

_Leroy Jethro Gibbs_

_Abigail Sciuto _

_Timothy McGee_

_Caitlin Todd"_

"What the…" He muttered, pulling out his cell phone. He quickly searched his address book, finding Gibbs' number and ringing it. It rang three times, before someone picked up.

"Gibbs." Strange. His voice didn't sound tired or half asleep – must have already been up.

"Uh, Gibbs…look it's Agent Chase." Liam muttered, trying to keep his voice low.

"Yes?" Gibbs snapped. "What is it?"

"Well, see there's a box out behind my house. It's addressed to you and the rest of your team, sir."

"Well? What's in it?"

"I didn't open it. Wasn't sure what I'd find."

"Give me ten." The phone beeped.

Liam stood by nervously for close to ten minutes, before his phone rang again.

"Agent Chase." He answered immediately.

"Where are you?" Gibbs demanded.

"Just behind my house, sir, there's a basketball court. Cross the court and just inside the forest."

"Right. Oh, and Chase? Don't call me sir." The phone hung up. Three minutes later, Gibbs, Kate and McGee arrived dressed in their NCIS gear.

"What we got?" McGee asked, yawning slightly.

Chase gestured to the box. "I got a weird call earlier that told me to come here at three. I thought it was a prank or a wrong number. I came anyway, waited a while, and when no one showed, I went into the forest. This was waiting. I haven't touched it, this is exactly as it was."

Gibbs nodded before gesturing to Tim. "Photos." After a few shots had been taken, Gibbs slid on his gloves. They formed a circle around the waist high box, as Gibbs slashed the tape with his knife. He carefully folded back the edges, peering inside.

_A body._

The figure was crouched in a sitting position, with their knees pressed up to their chest. The face wasn't visible as the body was facing downwards, and a shock of brown hair obscured their view. Gibbs didn't have to tell anyone not to touch.

He whipped out his cell, hitting speed dial two. "Ducky? It's Gibbs. Get a van out to Agent Chase's house, we got a body in a box-" Suddenly, Gibbs paused, something catching his eye.

A watch, on the left arm that was resting on the figure's knee. His eyes widened with realisation, as he dropped the phone. He strode forward, reaching into the box and grabbing the body's head, facing it towards him. He inhaled sharply, gesturing for his team to stay back. "Oh my God…" He whispered, leaning in to get a better look.

"What?" Kate demanded. "What is it?"

Gibbs turned back to the team, his face ashen. "It's…Tony."

…NCIS…

As they were waiting for Ducky and the recently called ambulance to arrive, Gibbs had managed to get Tony's body out of the box. He laid him out on the ground, all thoughts of contaminating the crime scene flown out the window, immediately pouncing on the chance to check his vitals. It was a very stressful and tense filled minute as Gibbs struggled to find a pulse, but finally, one was found.

"I got a pulse!" Gibbs yelled, causing Kate and McGee to snap out of their momentary shock. They hurried over, bodies almost on automatic as they stared wide eyed at their team mate.

His face was deathly pale, and his skin seemed to be stretched over his protruding face bones. His entire body was dangerously thin, his usual brown tan erased completely. He wore nothing but the faded boxer shorts, as he had in the first picture they'd received. His body was covered in bruises, cuts, abrasions and a few deep gashes. At least two ribs were clearly broken, in one case, the bone sticking out slightly through the skin. The wound on his head from that first week was still there, although it was partially healed. It looked as though the wound had been almost healed, before being reopened again within the last week or so.

As the three of them studied the body, Chase had gone to meet the ambulance and direct them over. He returned shortly, Ducky and four EMT's in tow with a gurney held between them. "Good Lord, Jethro!" Ducky gasped upon seeing Tony's body. He glanced to Gibbs as if for confirmation.

"He's alive." Gibbs said with a nod. "He's got a pulse, but it's weak and slowing by the second." The next few minutes were a blur as Ducky, along with the four Emergency Medical Technicians, attempted to stabilize him. Finally, they got him on the stretcher, and the EMT's took him back to the ambulance.

"C'mon guys." Gibbs sighed, rubbing his head wearily. "We've got a crime scene to work." Once his three agents were hard at work shooting, sketching, bagging and tagging, Gibbs turned to Ducky.

"Give me it straight, Duck."

Ducky shook his head, placing a hand on Gibbs' shoulder. "It doesn't look good." He sighed. "Young Anthony will be lucky if he makes it to the hospital."

Gibbs stared off into the distance for a moment, before turning and slamming his fist into a tree behind him. "God _Dammit!"_ He cursed loudly. "That bastard." Gibbs took a deep, shuddering breath. "He planned this all. He made it so that we found him, but far enough away that…that it'd be too late."

Ducky patted his arm comfortingly. "Don't write him off just yet Jethro. That boy never ceases to amaze me, and this time will be no different." He said sternly, holding Gibbs' gaze.

Gibbs glared for a moment, before breaking the stare with a sigh. "You better be right, Duck…you better be right."

…NCIS…

"_He'll…recovery…time."_

"…_Long?…"_

"…_unsure…moment. We'll…enough."_

"…_DiNozzo…"_

"DiNozzo."

Tony felt his eyes flutter open, almost against his will. A few moments later, he wished he hadn't, as he was blinded by the intense light. He slammed his eyes shut, swearing never to open them again as the light imprints fluttered behind his eyelids.

"Hey, Tony, can you hear me?"

He could. Problem was, he couldn't seem to make his mouth open properly. Finally, he managed a short grunt.

"That a yes, DiNozzo?"

Suddenly, a revelation hit him with the force of a freight train. That wasn't White. In fact, if he didn't know better, he'd say it was…

He broke his resolution and peeked his eyelids open slightly. The blinds had been shut _thank God,_ although the room was still too bright for his liking. Despite now having his eyes open, there was no way in hell he could make a positive identity from that…that _blur_ of light and weird fuzzy shapes.

He squinted carefully to try and make sense of the shape. His eye sight cleared slightly as he concentrated, bringing the image in focus enough to confirm his suspicions. "Where…am I?" he rasped, his voice no louder then the slightest whisper.

"Besthesda." Gibbs answered, looking at him carefully. Tony grunted in response, too many thoughts trying to cram their way inside his head.

_He abandoned me!  
No, he wouldn't._

_He did._

_Just play along._

_For now._

"Tony, I need you to answer some questions for me, okay?" Tony grunted in what he hoped was an affirmative tone. "Okay, firstly, what's your name?"

"'Nthony Di…DiNozzo." He muttered, stumbling slightly.

"How old are you?"

_How old am I?_

_Does it matter?_

_Don't think so…_

Gibbs peered at him closely, looking…concerned? No. It couldn't be. "Yes, Tony, if you can't remember your age then it matters."

"Can remember. Just dunno. How'd you know?" Tony felt the insane urge to giggle. "Really are psy-psychic aren't ya."

"Tony…" Gibbs murmured, leaning forward slightly. "You aren't making any sense."

"But if-if you were…psychic…" Tony voice trailed off slightly. _Why didn't he find me?_

Gibbs looked momentarily stricken. "Tony…Tony I didn't find you because I _couldn't_."

"Stop doing that!" Tony snapped angrily, although the energy was missing behind it. "Stop…stop readin' my mind." _Damn creepy how he does that._

"Tony…I'm not reading your mind." Gibbs sighed, shaking his head before standing. "I'm obviously confusing you. Just…rest a while, while I talk to your doctor." Tony's eyes slid shut and he was asleep before Gibbs finished his sentence.

Gibbs walked over to the doctor, concern evident in his eyes. "Doctor…what was all that?"

"Don't worry agent Gibbs." Doctor Fawn reassured him, grasping his shoulder. "That's a perfectly normal reaction. You have to remember, Tony's all doped up on all kinds of drugs right now. He'll be much more lucid next time he wakes up."

Gibbs settled himself back in the chair with a sigh. "Well…I'll be here." And he would.

He watched Tony sleep for a little while, his eyes flicking from the bruised face to the bandaged torso. Tony had needed stitches in four separate gashes, a total of forty-eight stitches. His head had also been sewed up, after the minor bone damage had been repaired in the surgery. His ribs had been put back into place and his right arm had turned out broken. As a result, Tony was on just about every kind of painkiller under the sun. Without them, Gibbs could only imagine the kind of pain Tony would be suffering through, and probably had suffered through before they'd found him.

"Don't worry Tony…" he whispered, stroking his hair absently. "That bastard's gonna get what he deserves."

--

**A/N: Don't get too comfortable…Tony's not out of the woods just yet…**


	6. Makeshift Wings

Home is Nowhere

**Home is Nowhere **

**Summary: Gibbs never really appeared to care a wit about his senior field agent…until Tony disappears one night without a trace. A mysterious assailant wants revenge, and this time it looks like it may be too late. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Navy NCIS.**

**Chapter six: Makeshift Wings**

The next time Tony woke, he found that he was much more orientated. While his eyesight did spin a little, it was a great deal clearer and sharper then before. The first thing that drew his attention, was that the chair beside his bed was occupied again. This time, however, it was a woman. She was pretty, dark brown hair and average height. Although Tony couldn't tell her eye colour as she was currently asleep, he instinctively knew that they were brown. He didn't really know how he knew, he just did. He studied her silently for a few moments, watching curiously as she began to stir.

Her eyes drifted open slowly, gazing at him for a moment before widening. "Tony!" She exclaimed. Tony winced a little, his ears aching slightly. "You're awake!"

He nodded slowly. Obviously, she knew him. The problem was that he didn't have a clue who _she_ was. Something in his eyes must have conveyed this, as she looked momentarily disconcerted.

"Kate." She said, pointing to herself, her eyes narrowing slightly. "Do you remember?"

He didn't. But at the same time, this lady, _Kate_, obviously knew him. He didn't want to upset her…he shrugged.

"Is that a yes or a no, Tony?" She asked, her voice sounding a little edgy. He shrugged. "Guess that's a no." She sighed, leaning back in the chair. "Of_ course_ you'd forget _me_…" She muttered, shaking her head. "Even when you're amnesiac you manage to piss me off." He smiled weakly – a little unsure of himself.

"Can you…speak?" She asked hesitantly, concern replacing the momentary anger. He shrugged. "Hm." She murmured as Tony's eyes began to drift closed, shaking her head slightly. "Gibbs said you remembered him…" Tony eyes snapped open violently, narrowing into slits.

"Gibbs…" He muttered, feeling himself grow angry. "Gibbs…"

"You…remember Gibbs?" Kate asked uncertainly, looking confused at the strange response. Oddly enough, he shook his head. "Do you…know who he is?"

"No…" he whispered, his voice hoarse. "But I know what he _did…_"

"What? Tony, I don't understand." Tony seemed to ignore the question, staring out the window pensively. It was a few minutes later when he responded.

"Neither do I." The voice was barely a whisper, and Tony didn't speak again after that. He refused to respond to any more questions, just kept staring out the window with that odd look on his face. Eventually, Kate gave up and went out into the waiting room where McGee was waiting.

She took the empty seat beside him, accepting the offered coffee with a thanks. It was several moments before he spoke.

"So…how is he?" Tim asked hesitantly, looking almost fearful of the answer.

Kate sighed, setting her coffee down. "I…don't know. Not so good." She shook her head, meeting Tim's eyes. "He didn't remember me – I'm sure of it. But he seemed alright until I mentioned Gibbs…he reacted to the name pretty badly – he was so angry he was shaking! I asked if he remembered Gibbs; obviously he did, but he said he didn't. I asked if he knew who Gibbs was, and he said no, but that he knew what Gibbs had _done_." Kate glanced back to McGee, eyes questioning. "I really don't know what he meant. He seemed lucid though – Gibbs said he was out of his mind the other day. Talking to himself out loud and saying weird things…there was none of that. He seemed normal, just…like a stranger."

After a few moments of considering her words, Tim nodded. "I'm gonna go see him."

"Are you sure?" Kate asked worriedly.

Tim nodded shortly, before standing and walking down the hall to Tony's room. He opened the door slowly, feeling Tony's gaze on him immediately. The gaze was assessing – there was no familiarity. It was almost like Tony was sizing him up, trying to see if he could take him.

Tim held his hands out calmingly, taking a seat slowly. "Hey Tony." He said after a few moments of silence. Tony nodded slightly in response, his calculating gaze still trained on Tim's face. "I'm Tim. Do you remember me?" The lack of response was answer enough. "I suppose not then. That's alright, Kate told me you forgot her too, huh?"

Tony shrugged, waiting a few moments before speaking softly. "I knew what colour her eyes were."

"What?"

"Kate." Tony said, his eyes scanning Tim's face for any reaction. "When she was sleeping. I knew what colour her eyes were. She thought I didn't remember her. I remembered her eyes." With that statement, Tony closed his eyes, although he waved his hand as if to signal that he was still listening.

"Right." Tim muttered. "Well I'm sure she'll be pleased to hear that…she was a little upset that you'd forgotten."

"Didn't wanna upset her…" Tony mumbled. "She seemed real nice."

"She is." Tim said with a smile.

Tony's eyes opened again after a few moments, locking with Tim's steady gaze. "Were we friends? Me and you?"

Tim thought about this briefly before answering. "Yes, I think so." At Tony's doubtful gaze, his elaborated. "Well, I always thought you didn't really like me a whole lot. But Kate…Kate told me that it was your way of…how did she put it? 'Showing affection'. She's a profiler…so she's probably right. We work together, Kate too. We all work at NCIS." Tony nodded obviously satisfied.

The silence stretched on for a few moments, before Tony spoke once more. "What about me and…Kate. Were we friends?"

"Yes." Tim said with a nod. "You guys were…like siblings. Very close, although you fight like cat and dog." He smiled slightly at the memory, causing Tony to smile a little too.

"Who else?" He asked quietly.

"Well…there's also Abby. You two are best friends. Do you remember Abby?"

"No…" Tony murmured, frowning slightly. "Tell me about her."

"She's our forensic scientist. She's goth – she usually wears a studded dog collar and black boots. She listens to heavy metal in her lab."

"You'd think…" Tony paused, as if collecting his thoughts. "You'd think…if we were so close…I wouldn't forget them." His voice sounded guilt filled. As if forgetting Kate and Abby was really upsetting him.

"It's alright Tony, Kate doesn't mind. And Abby won't. None of us do. We're just glad that you're alive." Tony's eyes snapped to his at that statement, holding his gaze for a moment.

"Hm." He murmured, before turning back to the window. After a few minutes, it became clear that Tony wasn't going to say anything else. He stood slowly, turning back as he reached the door.

"Night Tony." He was almost out the door before he heard the reply.

"Bye Tim…"

…NCIS…

"I assure you, Agent Todd, it's nothing to be too worried about." Doctor Fawn said, trying to calm the worried woman.

"But…he doesn't remember anything! How exactly is that 'nothing to worry about'?" Kate snapped, her eyes narrowing dangerously.

"Honestly. I would have been surprised if he _didn't_ have any lasting neural damage. Memory loss, while difficult to deal with, is much better then permanent brain damage. It's perfectly normal considering the extensive injuries to Tony's head. In most cases of this sort of amnesia the patient regains their memories eventually."

"Most?"

"Well, I'll admit there are a few cases where not all, if any, memories are recovered, but half the struggle relies on the patient _wanting_ to remember. Tony also isn't fully amnesiac – he still retains who he is, he knows his name, he just doesn't seem to remember people. I can't tell you how extensive the memory loss actually is, as Tony has so far refused to talk to anyone. I believe his little conversation with your Co-worker, Agent McGee, is the longest he's spoken to anyone as of yet."

Kate nodded finally, turning away. "Thank you doctor." She sighed, before returning to the waiting room and taking the empty seat next to Tim.

"When's Abby coming?' Kate asked, knowing that the excitable forensic scientist would be aching to see Tony by now.

"I just spoke to her, she's on her way." Kate nodded. "She's a little anxious though." Tim continued slowly. "She was scared that Tony wouldn't remember her."

"Maybe he will." Kate said, optimistically. "Tony was closest to Abby. If he remembers anyone, it'll be her."

"He doesn't…" Tim muttered. "I had to tell him about her. Maybe he'll pretend to remember her."

"Speak of the devil." Kate said with a smile, as Abby hurried through the doors.

"Kate! McGee!" She exclaimed, running over. "Where's Tony? How is he? Is he okay?"

"He's in the first room through those doors. He seems okay, if you discount the whole memory loss thing." McGee answered, pointing through the door. "You want me to come with?" He offered.

She shook her head before hurrying through the doors. "Thanks!" She threw over her shoulder before entering the hallway. She peered in the window of the first door, smiling when she saw Tony inside. She opened the door with only the slightest hesitation, and sat down next to the bed.

Tony's eyes flicked from the window, to her face. He smiled as his eyes settled on hers, quelling Abby's fears. "Tony!" She squealed, almost bouncing off the seat. "I wanna hug you, but I dunno whether I should…can I hug you?" Tony hesitated a few moments, before nodding slowly. Abby jumped out of her chair as Tony sat up, opening his arms slightly in anticipation. Abby hugged him much more gently then usual, but with just as much enthusiasm. After several moments, she sat back down looking much happier.

"Ohmygod Tony I missed you so much!" She paused, her eyes narrowing slightly. "Are you okay? And tell the truth, mister!"

"I'm fine Abby." Tony said with a small smile.

"Tony!" She squealed happily. "You remember me!"

He nodded hesitantly. "Yeah…"

"When you get out, you can stay at my place, kay? You're obviously more comfortable with me then the others, I mean you _remembered_ me and not them. And there's _no way_ I'm letting you go back to your apartment alone, not after what happened, so don't even bother…" Tony smiled at her excited tone, only half listening as she rambled on. It was good to think that he was missed, even if he didn't really know the people that had missed him. He didn't really know where he was or what he was doing…but right now, it felt like home.


	7. Summer Shudder

Home is Nowhere

**Home is Nowhere **

**Summary: Gibbs never really appeared to care a wit about his senior field agent…until Tony disappears one night without a trace. A mysterious assailant wants revenge, and this time it looks like it may be too late. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Navy NCIS.**

**A/N: Sorry for the delay, I've been pretty busy lately. I should hopefully be able to get back into a routine now.**

**Chapter seven: Summer Shudder**

Gibbs watched the scene in front of him from afar, a good few feet separating him from the glass window. He stood in a steely stance with his arms crossed over his chest, his face carefully blank of any emotion. His blue eyes stared almost unseeingly into the room behind the window, flickering with something that could only be identified by someone who knew him well. Unfortunately, there weren't too many people who fitted into that category; and one of the very few was the subject of his attention.

Tony looked mildly peaceful as Abby chatted a mile a minute to him, exhilarated that he appeared to remember her. But despite the calm exterior, Gibbs could detect something…different in Tony's eyes. Even under his intense study, which had by this point gone on for many minutes, he could not identify the new emotion. If he didn't know better, Gibbs would guess that it was…_fear_. But…Tony was never afraid. He didn't _show_ fear. Ever.

Gibbs stared at his (former?) senior field officer for several more long moments, before turning briskly on his heel and striding back down the hospital hallway. "McGee!" He snapped as he entered the waiting room, drawing all eyes to him – including those that didn't belong to the two assembled members of his team. "What are you still doing here? We have an investigation to re-open!" He barked before flipping open his cell phone and dialling a number. He waited impatiently for a few moments, before someone finally answered.

"_Agent Chase-"_

"I'll be there in five, and you'd _better_ have something." He snapped the phone shut with a loud click, before gesturing to his team. "McGee, you're with me. Kate, you stay here - I want a progress report on the hour _every_ hour."

…NCIS…

Tony warily followed the energetic goth through the crowded parking lot, glancing around nervously at the hundreds of people. "…and another reason why it is _so_ great that they've released you is…" Tony's mind scrambled to follow the one sided conversation, whilst trying to keep his attention on the other people at the same time.

"Abby," He whispered hoarsely, only to go unheard. He felt his breaths coming quicker as his chest began to tighten, a stranger brushing his shoulder as they passed. "Abby…" he tried once more, almost gasping as he tugged on her sleeve. She turned, finally, to meet his wild stare, eyes widening as she took in his anxious state.

He could feel himself shaking slightly as she grabbed his arm, trying to steady him. "Abby…get me…out of here." He whispered between ragged breaths as a large group of people walked by them.

"Ohmygod! Tony, what's wrong? Should I take you back to the hospital?" Tony shook his head urgently, sweat pooling on his brow as his eyes jerkily tracked the progress of the many people around him, some of which who were beginning to stare and crowd around worriedly.

"No…please no…" He began to beg, his eyes squeezing shut. "Just get me out…please get me out." Abby spotted her car a few hundred metres away, before dragging Tony through the staring crowd towards it.

The few moments it took for her to lead him to the car felt like years to Tony – he was pushed gently into the passenger seat as Abby jumped in, starting the car right away. Tony continued gasping for several minutes as she drove away form the hospital, until finally, his breathing calmed down.

"Are you alright?" Abby asked anxiously, her eyes snapping from the road to meet his fevered blue ones.

Tony nodded slowly, trying to further regulate his breathing. "I'm sorry." He said quietly after several moments of silence. "I…I dunno." He swallowed carefully. "Just…the people and…and the noise…" His voice trailed off as he stared vacantly out the window, pointedly ignoring her worried gaze.

"Tony!" She sighed with a slight shake of her head. "Never, ever be sorry about things like that!" She said, swatting his arms lightly. "It wasn't your fault. And you know what the boss says, apologising is a sign of…" She trailed off as he seemed to become even more distressed.

"Don't…don't say it." He gasped weakly, his hands tensing into fists. "Just…don't." He muttered, before his eyes slid closed, an exhausted sigh leaving his lips. "I'm sorry." He breathed, before drifting into sleep.

…NCIS…

He opened the ringing phone with a resounding snap. "Gibbs!" He barked, his sharp tone echoing through the almost silent bull pen.

"_Gibbs, it's Kate. The hospital decided to release Tony, Abby's taking him home."_

"What? So soon?"

"_Apparently they've done all they can with the physical stuff, and he'll just need time for them to heal completely. And seeing as he down right refused to see the hospital psychologist, there's not much they can do about the psychological stuff either. The doctor assured me that the retrograde amnesia shouldn't last long, but that there really wasn't anything we could do if it did. They needed the bed, and since he wasn't physically in danger anymore, Abby took him home."_

"Ring Abby and update me routinely." _Snap_.

"McGee! Chase! Got anything yet?"

"I'm working the a list of suspects we made before. One small problem though, boss."

"_What_, McGee!"

"The list is already about sixty names long."

"Well read me the most likely ones then!" He snapped, reaching the end of his rather short tether.

"Uh…Jason McDonald, the rapist Tony locked away while he was with LAPD. He just got out on parole. Henry Larson, the son of the serial killer that ended up on death row, you and Tony caught him a few years ago…"

"I remember." Gibbs said sharply. Now _that_ had been an interesting case.

"Henry could be out for vengeance. Gordon Hillet, Tony got him a few years for drug trafficking a while back. He's out as of a year ago – "

"Anything more recent?"

Tim scanned the list for a moment, before tapping a name with his pen. "There. James White. Brother of the guy Tony was chained to a month or two before he was kidnapped."

Gibbs considered this for a moment, before nodding. "We got ourselves a Person of Interest. Check him out."

…NCIS…

"So…if you want, we could watch a movie or something?" Abby suggested, gesturing towards the couch. Tony glanced over, seeming to consider it for a moment, before shaking his head.

"I want…" He paused, licking his lips nervously. "I want to talk. I want you to tell me about…about me. How I was, I mean. How you knew me." He finished awkwardly, shifting his weight from side to side.

Finally, Abby nodded. "Okay. Let's go sit down then." She led him over to the couch, where he sat anxiously. He glanced up at her, awaiting her words almost eagerly.

"Where do I start?" She muttered, shaking her head with a smile. "You went to school in Rhode Island and went straight into law enforcement when you graduated. You went to a few different police departments, usually only staying for a few years before moving on. You met Gibbs –" She ignored his slight flinch at the name. "-When you were with LAPD and had to share jurisdiction. By the time the case was finished, I guess he liked what he saw, because he invited you to join NCIS. That's when we met, I'm a forensic scientist there. That was probably…four, five years ago? You were really stiff and formal at first, but after a few weeks I guess you warmed up to me.

"You've always been after the ladies, usually younger ones, although your relationships never last long. You don't really like commitment, and a couple of months ago you mentioned to me that you'd thought about quitting – that was after a pretty hard case though, and obviously, you didn't quit. You always make jokes and fool around, but you know when to be serious, too. Just under two years ago, Kate joined he team. She was a secret service agent, and you really didn't like her at first. You were also a little jealous because me and Gibbs seemed to take to her faster then we did to you. There was a slight resentment between the two of you for a few months but you got used to each other, and you're good friends. You still fight a lot though, and you have a habit of annoying her to the point of insanity and completely disregarding her privacy. McGee joined the team about nine months ago. You guys have…a bit of a strange relationship. You've always teased and hazed him, and until recently, he didn't really understand why. He thought you didn't like him at all. But Kate set him straight."

Tony closed his eyes with a sigh, frustrated with his inability to recall any memories. He'd been certain that once Abby told him everything, he'd remember…but that was not the case. "So that's all? That's everyone on our team?"

"Well…"Abby paused, not really knowing how to say it. "There's one other guy, but he wasn't there when you were. A few weeks after you disappeared, the director assigned another senior field agent to the team, Liam Chase."

"_Do you know who this is?" White asked softly._

_Tony studied the photo for a moment, before shaking his head. "Nope."_

"_His name is Liam Chase." White grinned. "He is the man that your precious Gibbs has replaced you with."_

_Tony's mouth went dry. "No…" He muttered to himself. "He wouldn't."_

"_He did."_

Tony's head shot up, his eyes wide as the memory played over in his head. "I want to meet him." He said finally, his eye narrowed slightly.

"What?" Abby asked, looking confused.

"Liam Chase." Tony muttered. "I want to meet him. Can you arrange that?"

Abby studied him for a moment, before nodding carefully. "Sure, Tony. I'll ask Gibbs tomorrow-"

"No, not tomorrow!" Tony snapped, his head shooting up to glare in her direction. "I want to meet him _now._"

…NCIS…

"_I dunno Gibbs, he seemed pretty adamant. He wants to meet Chase."_

"Can it wait until tomorrow?" Gibbs asked, scanning the bull pen carefully. "He and McGee are looking into a Person of Interest."

"_I'll ask."_ There was a brief pause with some muffled talk in the background. Gibbs could almost hear her wince as she picked up the phone again. _"Uh…that was a no. A strong no. I don't know why, but Tony wants to meet him tonight. It's important to him Gibbs."_

"Alright." He snapped the phone shut before striding over to where Chase sat, peering at his computer screen.

"Chase!" He barked, catching the man's attention quickly. "You're with me. McGee, you stay here and keep working on White." Gibbs began to walk off, Chase following him quickly.

"Where are we going?"

"Tony wants to meet you. Now."


End file.
